Unit Title: Themes and rhetoric in Thoreau's WaldenGrade Level(s): 11-12 Subject/Topic Area(s): English Key Words: Literary analysis, rhetoric, figurative language, Thoreau, Walden Designed by: Laura Pulito Time Frame: School District: RSU 9 School:
Brief Summary of Unit
In this unit, students will read four chapters of Henry David Thoreau's Walden: "Economy", "Where I Lived and What I Lived For", "Spring", and "Conclusion." Students will pay particular attention to Thoreau's use of rhetoric, analyzing how rhetoric contributes to the effectiveness of the major themes and purposes of the book. Students will exercise their reading skills as well as their writing skills through a variety of assessments that require them to identify, analyze, and practice using rhetoric themselves. Simultaneously, students will consider Thoreau's purposes for writing Walden and draw connections between their own lives and major themes Thoreau expresses. At the conclusion of the unit, students will create a mixed-media rendition of Walden and present it to the class as their summative assessment.
Unit Cover Page
Unit Title: Themes and rhetoric in Thoreau's Walden Grade Level(s): 11-12
Subject/Topic Area(s): English
Key Words: Literary analysis, rhetoric, figurative language, Thoreau, Walden
Designed by: Laura Pulito Time Frame:
School District: RSU 9 School:
Brief Summary of Unit